As emergency services leaders, we always wonder why some people wait for so darned long before they call for help or why others simply refuse help until it’s far too late. We work on our emergency notification messaging. We examine our use of social media. We conduct customer service surveys. […]
Hal Newman
I wrote this back when H1N1 was just coming ashore. Sadly, it still seems relevant today. Standing with Serge [Nov 2 2008 – updated Jul 27 2009] I’ve been looking at medical surge as a series of ever-larger waves crashing ashore in that they continue picking up more and more […]
Ripples by Scott Gunderson A police officer spoke at my son’s Cub Scout meeting. The boys were captivated by his uniform, his gear, and the command presence of his voice. They were unusually quiet and attentive. He told the boys that what we do and what we say sends a […]
This episode of The Positive Paramedic Project comes to us from John Levac of Yarmouth, Nova Scotia. “65” I live in a small town. 12,000 strong if you include the county. When I am driving around it is common to see a 65 sticker on the back of a car. […]
Time is an essential part of life in EMS. Counting out the seconds in your head while taking stock of a patient’s pulse. Watching the chest rise and fall and keeping track of the number of breaths per minute. Performing compressions while keeping time to Stayin’ Alive looping in your […]
I wrote this stream-of-consciousness piece as a ‘soundtrack’ for a series of mixedtapes sent to a few well chosen friends. Have you ever considered Condition White? Condition White is the lowest end of the mental awareness spectrum developed by American law enforcement instructor Jeff Cooper. Condition White, according to the […]
Guillaume Rancourt knew he going to be a luthier when, at the age of 13, the other students in woodworking class were building birdhouses – and he was handcrafting his first guitar. He says it was, perhaps, his destiny to craft guitars by hand. “My grandfather was a handyman. I […]
We began hosting concerts in our home because we live in a small town (3,000 people) about two hours away from the closest large music venues (e.g., Montreal QC or Burlington VT) and we wanted our twin teenaged daughters to be able to experience top-quality live music in an audience-friendly […]
This was the eulogy I crafted for Dr. Peter Cohen’s farewell service on September 5, 2014 in Verdun QC. — Faith. That’s the word that comes to mind when I think of Peter Cohen. He had such faith. I met Peter for the first time when I was in […]
A nugget of Big Medicine for your consideration. #101 Vital signs. Back in October, I dropped the Bad’Baru off for an oil change and a couple of NASCAR-style body patches at the Garage Generale Stanstead. I loved the place. It was like Cheers! with grease. Everyone really did know your […]